Her dad, Ryan Schlecht, a volunteer firefighter working during the storm, and 17 of his colleagues heroically lifted the tree to free her and she was rushed to hospital – but the youngster sadly died from her injuries.

Zaylee’s mum Melissa Hoag and her two brothers and one sister were also in the house at the time of the tragedy but escaped injury.

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Kaylee’s gran Maureen Hurley paid tribute to her granddaughter on Facebook, posting: “Our family mourns the loss of my beloved, spirited granddaughter, Zaylee Schlecht, who died last night at the Oregon coast when a storm felled a large tree and crushed the portion of the mobile home she was sleeping in while visiting her mom.

“Zaylee, 8, my little fashion princess, has been surrounded throughout her life with love from her mother, Melissa, the protected love found in her wonderful father, Ryan’s arms, doting brothers, Skyden, Payden, and Hayden, and trotted after and adored by her sisters, Zarea and Corbin.

“Zaylee’s dad, our Ryan, was one of the 18 volunteer firefighters working to cut away the tree to save his little girl. Please, pray for this wonderful family.”

A GoFundMe page has now been set up by family member Victor Mendoza in memory of Kaylee as the Red Cross help the family with housing.

It reads: “January 3 at 11:15 pm a tree fell on the house of Zaylee Schlecht. She was pronounced dead at the hospital, leaving her family in shock and her mothers house destroyed.

“We still need to salvage what we can from the house and find her a place to stay. The Red Cross is helping with that but we may still need help with funeral costs.

“Many people have been asking how they can help so we started this. R.I.P Zaylee. We all love and miss you.”

And the online campaign has already nearly reached its $15,000 goal in less than 24 hours.

Victor added: “Thank you all so much for your love and support. We really appreciate it. I am going to raise the goal because I do not know how much it will take for housing on top of funeral costs. “Thank you all so much. There are no words.

“We can’t believe how much our community cares. You all all the most amazing people to be so selfless.

“Zaylee would have been proud to know how much everyone loves each other. We thank you, and once again there are no words to describe what we are all feeling.

“It means so much to everyone to be able to take care of Zaylee and make sure everything is going to be okay. Our whole family thanks everyone. Thank you so much.”

The tragedy comes as winter storms sweep the USA, causing devastation across the West coast.

Wet winter weather slammed much of the West yesterday, with several inches of snow in areas across Oregon and several feet predicted in the Sierra Navada.

Four people were killed by a suspected tornado in Rehobeth, Alabama after violent storms brought down a tree on their mobile home.

Focus shifts to recovery in North Carolina after Hurricane Matthew

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